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Hottest April on record is the 11th record-breaking month in a row Wed, 08 May 2024 04:00:22 +0100 Global temperatures in April 2024 were 1.6°C higher than the average for April during the pre-industrial era

Longest-living cat breeds revealed by life expectancy study Wed, 08 May 2024 02:00:33 +0100 Birman and Burmese cats typically live for more than 14 years while sphynxes live less than half as long on average, finds a study of pet cats in the UK

Renewables supply 30 per cent of global electricity for the first time Wed, 08 May 2024 01:01:11 +0100 The rapid growth of solar power led to a record-breaking year for clean energy generation in 2023, and the year is expected to mark the start of a long-term decline in fossil fuels

Sperm whale clicks could be the closest thing to a human language yet Tue, 07 May 2024 17:00:23 +0100 Analysis of thousands of exchanges between the intelligent cetaceans suggests they combine short click patterns – similar to letters of the alphabet - into longer sequences

Why we are finally within reach of a room-temperature superconductor Tue, 07 May 2024 17:00:00 +0100 A practical superconductor would transform the efficiency of electronics. After decades of hunting, several key breakthroughs are inching us very close to this coveted prize

Autoimmune conditions linked to reactivated X chromosome genes Fri, 03 May 2024 20:00:47 +0100 The inactivation of one copy of the X chromosome in female mammals may start to fail as they get older, which may be why women have a higher risk of autoimmune conditions such as lupus

Hackers can steal data by messing with a computer's processor Tue, 07 May 2024 15:23:05 +0100 Software that has been blocked from connecting to the internet should be secure from hacking attempts, but now researchers have found a way to sneak data out by varying the speed of the computer's processor

Lack of US bird flu tracking in cows may raise risk of human infection Tue, 07 May 2024 13:00:32 +0100 The strategy for tracking bird flu in US dairy cattle falls worryingly short of what is needed to prevent the outbreak from widening and potentially spreading to humans

Implantable heart pump could let children wait for transplants at home Tue, 07 May 2024 11:00:40 +0100 An implantable heart pump could help children with heart failure awaiting transplants forego bulky devices that require long hospital stays

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft launch delayed due to rocket fault Mon, 06 May 2024 19:04:26 +0100 Two astronauts will have to wait to set off for the International Space Station aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule, following a problem with the Atlas V rocket that caused the mission to be aborted before launch

How Schrödinger's cat could make quantum computers work better Mon, 06 May 2024 17:00:36 +0100 A quantum bit inspired by Schrödinger’s cat can resist making errors for an unprecedentedly long time, which makes it a candidate for building less error-prone quantum computers

Ball-balancing robot could assist wheelchair users Mon, 06 May 2024 18:00:06 +0100 A robot that moves around by balancing on a ball could prove a better assistant for wheelchair users than humanoid robots that walk on two legs

Black holes scramble information – but may not be the best at it Mon, 06 May 2024 14:00:47 +0100 Information contained within quantum objects gets scrambled when they interact. Physicists have now derived a speed limit for this process, challenging the idea that black holes are the fastest data scramblers

Zebras bob their heads at each other to signal cooperation Mon, 06 May 2024 13:00:09 +0100 Head-bobbing seems to be a way for zebras to invite others to groom, graze or move together, suggesting sophisticated social and cognitive capabilities

Swallowable sensor unfurls in stomach to monitor gut health Mon, 06 May 2024 11:00:44 +0100 A ribbon of electrodes could nestle in the gut to help diagnose gastrointestinal diseases linked to Parkinson’s

A new understanding of tinnitus and deafness could help reverse both Wed, 17 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 Investigations of the paradoxical link between tinnitus and hearing loss have revealed a hidden form of deafness, paving the way to possible new treatments

Stink bugs grow a fungal garden on their legs to fight parasitic wasps Mon, 06 May 2024 09:00:39 +0100 A surprise discovery has revealed that female stink bugs have a small indent on their hind legs that they use for cultivating fungi before spreading it on their eggs

The new drugs preventing allergic reactions to peanuts and other foods Wed, 01 May 2024 17:00:00 +0100 Incredible results from trials of several new medications show they can prevent potentially deadly reactions to foods like peanuts, eggs and dairy - and may one day treat asthma

Here's an easier way to improve the drainage of heavy clay soil Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Digging sand or grit into clay soils is a drainage fix that has been around for years, but James Wong turns to nature to find a less backbreaking solution

The galactic anomalies hinting dark matter is weirder than we thought Mon, 29 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 Cosmological puzzles are tempting astronomers to rethink our simple picture of the universe – and ask whether dark matter is even stranger than we thought

Can these awesome rocks become central Asia’s first UNESCO Geopark? Tue, 30 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 Long feted by fossil hunters and geologists, if UNESCO recognises the extraordinary rock formation at Madygen in Kyrgyzstan, it will soon be a player on the world stage

The "science of weird shit" and making sense of the paranormal Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Chris French, who runs the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths, explores what lies behind claims of ghosts, aliens and reincarnation in his new book

Kill the sun! How wild thought experiments drive scientific discovery Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 My colleagues call me a supervillain for trying to destroy the cosmos, but this kind of imaginative thinking isn't so far from what scientists do, says space reporter Leah Crane

Seven surprising things you may not know about roots Fri, 03 May 2024 10:00:25 +0100 Plants are often celebrated for the parts that are easy to see – flower, leaves, fruit – but scientists are uncovering the secrets of their more mysterious underground networks

Protocells on early Earth may have been formed by squeezing geysers Fri, 03 May 2024 15:00:17 +0100 Simulations of the crust of early Earth show that cycles of pressure caused by geysers or tidal forces could have generated cell-like structures and even very simple proteins

Red squirrels were hosts for leprosy in medieval England Fri, 03 May 2024 17:00:26 +0100 DNA analysis of remains found at medieval sites has identified closely related strains of leprosy-causing bacteria in the bones of humans and a red squirrel

Flies undertake epic migrations that may be vital for pollination Fri, 03 May 2024 13:00:05 +0100 Migrating flies can carry pollen hundreds or thousands of kilometres, and this could help plants adapt to climate change

Mysterious space signals may come from a dead star with a planet Fri, 03 May 2024 11:00:20 +0100 Strange bursts of radio waves called FRBs have long been mysterious, and one of the most famous sources of these flashes may have an unexpected planet

China is sending its Chang’e 6 spacecraft to the far side of the moon Fri, 03 May 2024 11:06:20 +0100 If all goes well, the Chang’e 6 probe will be the first ever to land on the far side of the moon to take samples and bring them back to Earth

Indoor climbing wall users may be breathing in toxic rubber dust Fri, 03 May 2024 09:00:19 +0100 The air and dust in climbing centres contain high levels of rubber particles from the soles of climbing shoes, some of which contain toxic additives

These stunning close-up photos offer a window onto the world of bees Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 From an orchid bee to a violet carpenter bee, these images show the insects in amazing detail

Rising temperatures are cooking bumblebee nests and killing larvae Fri, 03 May 2024 06:00:32 +0100 Climate change could be fueling bumblebee population loss by making hives too hot to handle

Orangutan is first non-human seen treating wounds with medicinal plant Thu, 02 May 2024 17:00:29 +0100 A male Sumatran orangutan chewed the leaves of a plant used in Indonesian traditional medicine and placed them on a wound on his face

Being angry for just 8 minutes could increase risk of a heart attack Wed, 01 May 2024 13:18:52 +0100 People who were asked to recall past events that made them angry experienced a change to their blood vessels that has been linked with heart attacks

The shift to LED lighting is stopping us from seeing our night skies Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 From an energy perspective, the move away from sodium vapour lamps to LEDs is great, but the news isn't so good when it comes to light pollution. The way we illuminate the world needs to be part of our green agenda, says Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

MMR vaccines may not always give lifelong immunity against measles Thu, 02 May 2024 14:00:46 +0100 Levels of protection measles provided by the MMR jab fall by a small amount every year, according to mathematical modelling

Politicians can use social media ads to buy votes for €4 per person Thu, 02 May 2024 13:22:08 +0100 An analysis of the 2021 German federal elections has found that for every 200,000 times a politician's social media adverts were viewed, their vote share increased by 2.1 per cent - a potentially low-cost way of swinging elections

Astonishing images show how female Neanderthal may have looked Thu, 02 May 2024 12:10:46 +0100 The skull of Shanidar Z was found in the Shanidar cave in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, and has been painstakingly put back together

Is climate change accelerating after a record year of heat? Thu, 02 May 2024 12:00:14 +0100 The record-breaking heat of 2023 has seen a rare disagreement break out between climate scientists, with some saying it shows Earth may have entered a new period of warming

How to make $138,000 from shredded banknotes – if you're in Hong Kong Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Feedback is intrigued by the possibilities of a new paper theorising that computer vision could be used to reconstruct shredded banknotes contained in a paperweight souvenir

The unexpected effects of nostalgia on our health and at work Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Nostalgia isn’t only about a rose-tinted view of the past. This emotion can also be put to use in surprising places, says Agnes Arnold-Forster

GPS jamming traced to Russia after flights over Europe suspended Wed, 01 May 2024 21:00:00 +0100 Finnair has cancelled flights to Tartu in Estonia this month because of an ongoing GPS jamming attack – and there is evidence that the attack is being controlled from Russia

Corals that recover from bleaching still struggle to breed Thu, 02 May 2024 09:00:14 +0100 Corals can survive heat-related bleaching, but research from the Great Barrier Reef suggests a full recovery may take longer than we thought

Joel Edgerton must escape the multiverse in a gripping sci-fi series Thu, 02 May 2024 09:00:00 +0100 Blake Crouch's riveting Dark Matter sees physics professor Jason wanting out of the multiverse, after being kidnapped and dumped there by another version of himself

Johann Hari's compelling but flawed look at the new weight-loss drugs Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Drugs like Ozempic may help fight obesity. Johann Hari’s first-person account of taking the new medicines is a fascinating exploration of their impact

European summers will be hotter than predicted because of cleaner air Wed, 01 May 2024 20:00:07 +0100 By ignoring declining air pollution, regional climate models have greatly underestimated how hot Europe's summers and heatwaves will become

India's next leader will have the chance to lead the world on climate Wed, 01 May 2024 19:00:00 +0100 The future prime minister of this increasingly powerful nation should be prepared to play a key role in global climate policy

Carbon-negative cement can be made with a mineral that helps catch CO2 Wed, 01 May 2024 01:01:02 +0100 A process to dissolve the mineral olivine in acid could provide a plentiful, energy-efficient material for carbon-negative cement

Why warm drinks taste more alcoholic than cold ones Wed, 01 May 2024 17:00:53 +0100 Chemists have found a link between the taste of a beverage and the shapes formed by its water and ethanol molecules, which explains why spirits like whisky taste more alcoholic at warmer temperatures

Father's gut microbiome may affect infant health Wed, 01 May 2024 17:00:01 +0100 Disrupted gut microbiomes in male mice increase their offspring’s risk of low birth weight, stunted growth and premature death

Odd bump on praying mantis chest is actually world’s weirdest tongue Wed, 01 May 2024 13:00:47 +0100 A bristly bump on some mantises’ chests is a never-before-seen “gustifolium”, which may have evolved to help the insects with their highly specialised lifestyles

The best new science fiction books of May 2024 Wed, 01 May 2024 11:00:28 +0100 A new Stephen King short story collection, an Ursula K. Le Guin reissue and a celebration of cyberpunk featuring writing from Philip K. Dick and Cory Doctorow are among the new science fiction titles published this month

Want to move fast? Look for these materials in your next running shoes Wed, 01 May 2024 07:00:36 +0100 Spiked running shoes with a rubbery material between the inner and outer soles, and a stiff plate to improve stability, seem to help people move faster

Running around a 'wall of death' could keep moon settlers fit Wed, 01 May 2024 01:01:53 +0100 Lunar settlers could avoid health problems like muscle wasting by running on the inside of a circular wall to mimic the pull of Earth’s gravity on the body

How could we make a solar eclipse happen every day? Tue, 30 Apr 2024 15:53:42 +0100 Total solar eclipses are astonishing, but travelling to get to one is less so – this episode of Dead Planets Society is all about rearranging the solar system to create a more convenient eclipse

Most brain monitors sold to consumers don't keep your data private Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:00:38 +0100 A report found data privacy problems with the vast majority of 30 companies that sell neurotechnology devices to consumers. New US state laws aim to change that

Australia places A$1 billion bet on quantum computing firm PsiQuantum Tue, 30 Apr 2024 11:10:49 +0100 A joint investment by the Australian federal government and the government of Queensland makes PsiQuantum one of the largest dedicated quantum computing firms in the world

How India has slowly but surely become a major player in space Tue, 30 Apr 2024 11:00:56 +0100 India’s space agency has been remarkably successful in recent years, growing the country’s prestige on the global stage – and the 2024 election is unlikely to change that

India is poised to become a climate leader, but is it up to the task? Tue, 30 Apr 2024 09:00:34 +0100 As the world's third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, climate policy decisions taken by India will shape the fate of the entire world. But can it continue to develop its economy while keeping carbon dioxide down?

Plastic pollution treaty would be 'failure' without tackling emissions Mon, 29 Apr 2024 21:44:21 +0100 Plastic production is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than flying – at a summit in Canada, countries were divided on how to deal with this under-recognised part of the plastic problem

Foxes' skulls are specially adapted for diving into snow Mon, 29 Apr 2024 21:00:59 +0100 Red foxes and Arctic foxes dive headfirst into snow at up to 4 metres per second to catch small rodents, and the shape of their snouts reduces the impact force

English oaks can withstand warming – but other trees will struggle Mon, 29 Apr 2024 18:06:42 +0100 Climate change means many tree species planted today in Europe won’t survive to the end of the century, but English oaks could thrive in many areas

Why you may have a stealth liver disease and what to do about it Mon, 08 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 One in three adults have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease – often without knowing. Now we understand what causes this stealthy condition and how to reverse it

Genetically modified golden rice may yet succeed in the Philippines Mon, 29 Apr 2024 14:00:56 +0100 A court in the Philippines revoked the permit to grow rice genetically modified to boost vitamin A, but the government is expected to appeal against the decision

AI that determines risk of death helps save lives in hospital trial Mon, 29 Apr 2024 11:00:54 +0100 An AI trained on the heart's electrical activity alerted physicians about patients at high risk of dying, significantly reducing deaths in a clinical trial with almost 16,000 patients at two hospitals

Toxic chemicals from car tyres can get into soil and contaminate food Mon, 29 Apr 2024 13:00:17 +0100 Governments need to take action to protect people from potentially toxic additives in tyre rubber, say researchers after finding they can get into food from contaminated soil

How the US is preparing for a potential bird flu pandemic Fri, 26 Apr 2024 23:11:01 +0100 As the US grapples with an ongoing bird flu outbreak in dairy cattle, the country’s health agencies are ramping up surveillance efforts and working to develop a vaccine if needed

Image-generating AI creates uncanny optical illusions Mon, 29 Apr 2024 07:00:58 +0100 Generative AI models designed to create images from text can be adapted to construct complex optical illusions - pictures that look like different things when viewed from far away or with motion blur

Vindication for maths teachers: Pythagoras's theorem seen in the wild Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 For all the students wondering why they would ever need to use the Pythagorean theorem, Katie Steckles is delighted to report on a real-world encounter

A new kind of experiment at the LHC could unravel quantum reality Wed, 24 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 The Large Hadron Collider is testing entanglement in a whole new energy range, probing the meaning of quantum theory – and the possibility that an even stranger reality lies beneath

How to get the right balance of omega-3s and omega-6s in your diet Tue, 23 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 The balance of omega fatty acids in the food we eat affects our health. But what does the evidence say about claims you should be seeking to reduce omega-6 intake as well as boosting omega-3s?

Bowhead whales still harmed from whaling that ended a century ago Fri, 26 Apr 2024 23:00:00 +0100 Commercial bowhead whaling ended in the early 20th century, but the industry’s lasting effects on the whales’ genetic diversity are leading to declines again

The incredible new tech that can recycle all plastics, forever Mon, 22 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 "Advanced recycling" promises to convert dirty, mixed waste plastic into brand new plastic time and time again. It is a major step towards creating a circular economy and fighting climate change

5 extraordinary ideas about the mind and what it means to be conscious Fri, 26 Apr 2024 17:00:31 +0100 To celebrate the launch of our new event series in the US, kicking off with a masterclass on the brain and consciousness, we have made five incredible stories on that subject free to read

Rare mutation that causes short stature may shed light on ageing Fri, 26 Apr 2024 17:00:00 +0100 The genetic variant, which causes people to be insensitive to growth hormone, may also protect people from heart disease

Alpacas are the only mammals known to directly inseminate the uterus Fri, 26 Apr 2024 16:00:52 +0100 When alpacas mate, males deposit sperm directly into the uterus, a reproductive strategy not confirmed in any other mammals

Asteroid that broke up over Berlin was fastest-spinning one ever seen Fri, 26 Apr 2024 14:00:07 +0100 Before it shattered over Germany, the asteroid 2024 BX1 was clocked rotating once every 2.6 seconds – the fastest spin we have observed

Global warming could make tides higher as well as raising sea levels Fri, 26 Apr 2024 12:00:58 +0100 In addition to the overall rise in sea level, the heights of tides are also changing as the oceans warm and separate into more distinct layers

These photos show how a warmer climate is damaging Earth's waters Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Photographer Diane Tuft has documented how global warming is affecting bodies of water around the world

Deepfake politicians may have a big influence on India’s elections Fri, 26 Apr 2024 09:00:16 +0100 Political campaigns are deploying AI-generated deepfake versions of politicians to reach hundreds of millions of eligible voters in India’s 2024 election – the world’s largest ever

This one-room sci-fi thriller should take its MacGuffin more seriously Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 In Breathe, Earth is stripped of its oxygen, the plants are dead, oceans are dried up, no one trusts anyone — but we don't know what caused it. This sci-fi film fails to stand out among superior one-room thrillers, says Simon Ings

Two medicines for opioid addiction also help with compulsive gambling Fri, 26 Apr 2024 07:00:10 +0100 The medicines nalmefene and naltrexone helped compulsive gamblers reduce their betting activities, trials have shown

Swarm of nanorobots can remove tiny plastic fragments from water Thu, 25 Apr 2024 23:00:19 +0100 In just 2 hours, small metal robots can capture most nanoscopic plastic particles from a sample of water

Wasps use face-recognition brain cells to identify each other Thu, 25 Apr 2024 21:57:08 +0100 The neurons in wasp brains that help them recognise hive mates are similar to those in the brains of primates, including humans

Supermassive black holes may provide a nursery for mini ones to grow Thu, 25 Apr 2024 21:00:15 +0100 The supermassive black holes at the centres of galaxies may capture smaller black holes. Not only does this prove a place for the small black holes to grow, it also makes the supermassive ones look even bigger and brighter

Birthplace of red asteroid Kamo‘oalewa pinned to specific moon crater Thu, 25 Apr 2024 19:00:15 +0100 The redness of asteroid 469219 Kamo‘oalewa marks it out as probably originating on the moon, and now we might know the exact impact crater it was launched from

Rat neuron injection lets mice that can’t smell sniff out cookies Thu, 25 Apr 2024 17:00:14 +0100 Mice that had been genetically modified to lack the ability to smell could sniff out hidden cookies when sensory neurons from rats were grown in their brains

Nuclear fusion experiment overcomes two key operating hurdles Wed, 24 Apr 2024 17:00:38 +0100 Two important barriers to a stable, powerful fusion reaction have been leapt by an experiment in a small tokamak reactor, but we don’t yet know if the technique will work in larger devices

Modern rose hybrids have a worrying lack of genetic diversity Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:00:31 +0100 Intensive breeding since the 19th century has created thousands of varieties of rose, but a reduction in genetic diversity could leave them vulnerable to diseases and climate change

Why curbing chatbots' worst exploits is a game of whack-a-mole Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 AI companies are trying to impose safety measures on their chatbots, while researchers are finding ways around them all the time. Where will this end, asks Alex Wilkins

Brain activity seems to be more complex in baby girls than boys Thu, 25 Apr 2024 13:00:28 +0100 When fetuses and babies were exposed to sound stimuli, their brains' subsequent activity appeared to be more complicated in the females than the males

The next frontier of forensic science: blood splatter in microgravity? Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Feedback is pleased to see that researchers are looking into the urgent issue of which angle blood might travel at following a violent act in space

India’s healthcare system falls short despite Modi’s improvements Thu, 25 Apr 2024 11:00:51 +0100 More than 1.4 billion people live in India, giving its healthcare system a major role in planetary well-being. In the past 10 years, prime minister Narendra Modi has worked to improve India's healthcare, but there is still much work to be done

Why we need to modernise our emotional relationship with cancer Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Cancer has been one of the world's most feared diseases for decades. But this "cancerphobia" no longer matches the evidence and is doing great harm, argues David Ropeik

Can India build a world-leading computer chip industry from scratch? Thu, 25 Apr 2024 09:00:49 +0100 India currently has a fairly small chip-manufacturing industry, but prime minister Narendra Modi wants the country to become a dominant player in the sector in just a few years

A radical new book sets out to hunt for 'pure consciousness' Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Thomas Metzinger's The Elephant and the Blind explores deep meditation, which can take us to states where the sense of self vanishes, arguing that this may be crucial in cracking consciousness

Japan’s SLIM moon lander has shockingly survived a third lunar night Wed, 24 Apr 2024 20:04:05 +0100 Almost all moon landers break down during the extraordinary cold of lunar night, but Japan’s Smart Lander for Investigating Moon has astonishingly survived three nights

Quantum forces used to automatically assemble tiny device Wed, 24 Apr 2024 20:00:40 +0100 The very weak forces of attraction caused by the Casimir effect can now be used to manipulate microscopic gold flakes and turn them into a light-trapping tool

Culling predatory starfish conserves coral on the Great Barrier Reef Wed, 24 Apr 2024 20:00:18 +0100 Targeted culling of crown-of-thorns starfish has resulted in parts of the Great Barrier Reef maintaining and even increasing coral cover, leading researchers to call for the programme to be dramatically scaled up

Let's not trash recycling technologies that could end plastic waste Wed, 24 Apr 2024 19:00:00 +0100 Some environmental campaigners claim that attempts to create a circular economy for plastics are doomed to fail – but the arguments can be disingenuous